Engineers at the University of Illinois have developed an electrolyte that could help manufacturers produce recyclable, self-healing commercial batteries. In a study published in the Journal of the American Chemical Socie ty, the researchers said that they have created a solid polymer-based electrolyte that can self-heal after damage—and the material can also be recycled without the use of harsh chemicals or high temperatures. In their paper, the experts wrote that their invention came to be as a response to the push to replace the liquid electrolytes in lithium-ion batteries with solid materials such as ceramics or polymers. This addresses issue related to batteries developing dendrites or branchlike structures of solid lithium after going through multiple cycles of charge and discharge. Dendrites reduce battery life, cause hotspots and electrical shorts, and sometimes grow large enough to puncture the internal parts of the battery, causing explosive chemical reactions between the electrodes […]